Researchers at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology's (NTNU) Department of Electronic Systems, led by professors Helge Weman and Bjørn-Ove Fimland, have succeeded in building UV LEDs by growing AlGaN nanowires on graphene. "We've shown that it's possible, which is really exciting," says PhD candidate Ida Marie Høiaas, who has been working on the project with PhD candidate Andreas Liudi Mulyo.
A layer of graphene placed on glass forms the substrate for the researchers' new diode that generates UV light. Researchers then grew nanowires of AlGaN on the graphene lattice, using molecular beam epitaxy. This was conducted in Japan, where the NTNU research team collaborates with Katsumi Kishino at Sophia University in Tokyo.